Chapter 43 Chapter 42 The Scientist Uprising

Ding Jieqiong was writing a letter again, still the kind of letter that could not be posted: "Guanlan, my dear brother! The last letter to you was written three days ago..." You know, Perry's phrase "Japan is finished" was once considered by me to be the most beautiful bass in the world; even his hoarse voice, which is unique to old soldiers, I found fascinating!But today, just a week later, my mood has changed dramatically, if not radically.After seeing that scene in the early morning of July 16, the scientists present and I felt excited and excited at first; thinking that our years of hard work and toil were not in vain, that our wisdom and foresight had finally been proven, and that justice would be served. The justice and peace of the human world will be restored, and the Japanese bandits will soon be defeated and punished as they should be—especially because I have made a contribution on behalf of the Chinese nation... However, with the observation results of the explosion site It kept coming, and I gradually became uneasy.Strong shock waves can shatter all hard structures, and high-energy light radiation can directly carbonize all organic matter—these are the two most impressive lethal forces; and I am a researcher of radioactivity and particle origin, and I am more worried about penetrating radiation and radioactive contamination.The half-life of many radioactive substances produced during nuclear explosions of uranium and plutonium is as long as dozens of days, months or years, and some even as long as billions of years!Some of these radioactive elements are easily absorbed by the body, deposit in bones or certain organs, and cause death from within.In addition, there is another destructive force that people have not noticed, namely the nuclear electromagnetic pulse - how can all these large-scale, literally "destroying" destructive forces be used against another country on the same earth , against another nation that is also human?

It's not just me.At Alamos, the physicist Rodham spearheaded opposition to the use of atomic bombs against Japan, which did not have atomic weapons; or, more generally, against its use in war.His actions inspired and moved people.A group called "Scientists Uprising" (referred to as "Uprising") was established, and Rodham was elected as the chairman. Now more than one hundred people have participated; most of the participants are young people, but there are also Carmon, my Neighbor Brown and Dr. Frege, who served as the dean of Caltech, and other highly respected scientists of the older generation.I also participated.Aum could not attend because of his position - he must be more "disciplined" than the others or risk being court-martialled; but he sympathized with us...

As I write this, the doorbell rings.Ding Jieqiong stopped writing and turned on the walkie-talkie: "Who?" "I, Aaron Perry." The General's voice was still hoarse, but cold, no longer "the best bass in the world." The female scientist raised her eyes to look at the clock: No, it is seven forty-five in the evening—old soldiers are always very punctual, and today is no exception.Ding Jieqiong was so busy writing letters that she forgot the appointed time.She got up hurriedly: "I'm sorry, General. Please wait a moment." Ding Jieqiong put away the unfinished letter, tidied up a little, hurried downstairs and went out.The general, who was hovering beside the car, nodded politely when he saw her.In the back seat of the car, both of them were expressionless, staring straight ahead, neither of them spoke.The car drove a long way, Ding Jieqiong finally couldn't help it, and said softly: "General!"

"Please tell me." Perry said coldly. "I have a feeling, you, you..." "Go on." "The contradiction between you and the scientists, the contradiction between me," Ding Jieqiong paused, and continued, "With all due respect, the root cause is that you keep too much personal grudges!" "What's the meaning?" "Your only son died at Pearl Harbor..." "You know about this?" "Aum told me long ago, and about your wife..." The general still looked ahead, not speaking. "Of course, we all understand you, we sympathize with you, and we all mourn the heroic sacrifice of the young man... But, in the face of history, in the face of all mankind, in the face of such a large and complex world war, in the face of the treacherous International situation, you..." Ding Jieqiong stuttered, feeling that he had become a poor actor, playing a politician.But, fortunately, the General was serious, listening, and could not see contempt, teasing, or indifference; so she went on: "How can you look at the matter and make a decision from the perspective of your own personal enmity?"

"I have made many decisions. Which one or which ones are you talking about?" Perry still stared straight ahead, narrowing his eyes slightly. "Is it the use of atomic bombs against Japan?" "yes." "This is a big matter, too big to be decided by me." "But you can influence policy makers. Your influence is undoubtedly powerful." "What kind of influence would you like me to exert over the president, the ministers and the chiefs of staff?" "Of course it is against the use of atomic bombs against Japan." "I was never consulted by the President, the Secretaries, and the Chiefs of Staff on whether to use the bomb, on whom to use it, and how to use it. Also, don't you forget that I am a soldier; You can only obey, you cannot object." The general finally turned his face away and glanced at Ding Jieqiong, "And, why should I object? Do you know that if you count the workers, there are hundreds of thousands of people who have participated in the 'Manhattan Project' successively? ——Why should the years of hard work and valuable achievements of the American people be sunk into the Mariana Trench? Why should billions of dollars of huge money and wealth be turned into a pile of rubbish? If such a policy is adopted politically and economically Values, this way of ignoring cost accounting, such a waste of manpower and resources, such a desecration of human civilization, and such misconduct to confuse right and wrong, there will be no powerful and invincible America today."

"'Desecration of human civilization'," Ding Jieqiong was angry, "such a word will come out of your mouth!" "You know one of my famous sayings: 'Everything I do is right'—I want to tell you now: everything I just said is also right!" The general's face and voice were cold and hard, "What is the atomic bomb? It is the product of the highest level of human civilization today - you participated in the development of the atomic bomb. Can you say that what you work for is not civilization but barbarism? The atomic bomb is built to use it, unless the premise of using it is lost , the premise is that Japan has surrendered unconditionally - have we urged it to surrender? Yes, we have repeatedly urged and warned. You will not forget that the last time we urged and warned was the Potsdam Proclamation, one of the three signatories It is your motherland—China. It must be admitted that we have done our best. But has Japan surrendered? No. Not only has it not surrendered, but it is still killing people, killing people every day, thousands of people killing people, and the one who killed the most is probably the most It’s you Chinese! I’ll say it again: the atomic bomb should be used if it’s built, and if it’s not used to bomb Japan and force it to surrender, we will become Japanese’s accomplices and become a war crime that happens every day and an accomplice in murder."

"But the Japanese don't have atomic bombs." Ding Jieqiong looked at Perry in surprise, and her tone was a bit incoherent. "At least we shouldn't use atomic bombs on countries that don't have atomic bombs." "What kind of logic is this?" The general turned his head and looked at the female professor again, "China is poor and backward, and has no advanced weapons. But Japan, which has a large number of advanced weapons, does not think that it should not invade China because of this. It does not even I think it shouldn't attack the United States, which is far more advanced and powerful than it." Having said this, Perry shrugged: "To put it bluntly, Miss Ding, I can't understand the Japanese. They are not human beings at all, but a group of mad dogs, a group of Red-eyed mad dog!"

Ding Jieqiong listened, feeling speechless. "Also, you want to wait until the Japanese have the atomic bomb, and then we fight them on equal terms? No, once they have the atomic bomb, they will go to war without declaring it and drop it on us—they I’ve done this in Pearl Harbor before, so I’m familiar with it.” The general said with a faint smile, “If you really want to do that, that’s great, you and I were burnt into charcoal in an instant, so there’s no need to talk nonsense like that!” The base club is almost here.They both looked ahead and stopped talking. As the development of the atomic bomb approached success, the voices against the use of the atomic bomb grew louder.

As early as August 1944, nuclear physicist and Nobel laureate Bohr used his reputation to lobby Roosevelt and Churchill successively, urging them not to use the atomic bomb.Both were rejected. In October 1939, Presidential Adviser Sachs delivered the "most important letter of the twentieth century" to Roosevelt, and the development of the atomic bomb was put on the agenda; The President submits a memorandum opposing the "hasty" use of the atomic bomb.He wrote vigorously and plausibly said: Szilard is a good friend of Ding Jieqiong and Olmhouse.He had ghostwritten Einstein's "most important letter of the twentieth century" in October 1939.It was Szilard who mobilized Einstein to write to Roosevelt in the spring of 1945 when the atomic bomb was about to come out, opposing its use.The reason is that the battle situation is already clear, and Germany will collapse without the atomic bomb.Roosevelt died suddenly on April 12 without seeing the letter.Truman, who saw the letter, ignored it.

The original intention of the United States to develop the atomic bomb was to "get ahead of the Germans."But as early as May 1944, the Allies had ascertained that Germany was completely incapable of building an atomic bomb; after Germany surrendered on May 8, 1945, this was further confirmed.The only enemy left now is Japan, and Japan is obviously even less capable of making atomic bombs.Dr. Rodham once said with a smile to Perry: "That's great, so we don't have to build an atomic bomb..." The general replied firmly: "If Japan has not surrendered unconditionally, we will build an atomic bomb; And as long as we create an atomic bomb, we must drop it on the Japanese!"

Roldham informed Szilard in Chicago of the situation.Therefore, in June 1945, on the eve of the advent of the atomic bomb, a group of scientists including Szilard submitted a petition to the Secretary of the Army, opposing the use of atomic bombs to bomb Japan. The scientists at Alamos were appalled by the horrific destructive power demonstrated by the first nuclear test on July 16, 1945.They connected, signed, gathered, issued a manifesto, and organized a "scientists uprising" against the use of atomic bombs. Many scientists from Base X, Base W, the University of Chicago, Columbia University, and the University of California also responded positively and participated in the "uprising."All these bases and universities sent people to watch the July 16 test.They agreed with Sachs' proposition: Explode an atomic bomb on a desert or a deserted island to show its power, then invite neutral countries and Japan to send representatives to watch, in order to force Japan to surrender... The Ministry of War categorically rejected all these propositions, and made almost tit-for-tat suggestions to the President: 1. bomb Japan with atomic bombs as soon as possible; In order to show its power, it will completely destroy the spirit of the Japanese emperor, government and nation. The symbol of its being "destroyed" is kneeling and surrendering!3. There is no need to warn Japan in advance when carrying out atomic bombing; 4. It is not necessary to notify Congress and request authorization. It was Major General Perry who drafted the proposal on behalf of the military. Ding Jieqiong is deeply worried about the bombing target in the second article of the above "suggestion" that "there are a large number of civilian buildings that are easy to be bombed and burned around", and believes that this is a blatant encouragement to kill and injure civilians.She also has a deeper and more intense worry that the military appreciates and decides to adopt her latest research results: a calculation table about the relationship between the atomic bomb yield and the "optimum height" when it explodes.It was during this research that she created a new discipline - "Nuclear Explosion Aerodynamics".What she didn't realize at the time was that this "sweet spot" was almost synonymous with "kill as much as possible" and "destroy as much as possible."The generals gleefully talked about words in the "calculation sheet" such as: "If the atomic bomb explodes at 40 percent below or 14 percent above the 'optimum altitude,' the ground Severe damage received will be reduced by twenty-five per cent", etc.The generals patted their thighs and shouted: Great!Be sure to set the exact "best height" for each atomic bomb, and be sure to maximize its destructive power and lethality! To Ding Jieqiong, it was like the executioner was clamoring "kill", "kill more" and "kill more"—as a female scientist, her career and destiny have come to this point, which is beyond her expectation!She was in so much pain that it was unbearable.Therefore, when Professor Rooldum and his "neighbor" Dr. Brown came to lobby, Ding Jieqiong felt that he had no hesitation, and signed his "legal name" in Alamos, Jiang Menghong, on the "Declaration", becoming an "insurgent" . This must have made General Perry very unhappy.However, fortunately, he and the female professor did not turn against each other because of this, and they still kept in touch; however, embarrassment and even conflicts were inevitable—this had already been shown on the car heading to the club.Perry agreed with more than a dozen representative "insurgents" to hold a "symposium" there.At a time when the atomic bomb was successfully tested but not yet used for bombing, it was said that such a symposium was necessary and might even prevent bombing... The general called in advance to invite Ding Jieqiong to go, saying that he would pick her up in person.The female professor readily agreed.She knew that her political insights and eloquence were not outstanding, and she could not persuade Perry at all; but she thought that those famous male colleagues might be able to do this. A conference room upstairs in the club is brightly lit.The table was arranged in a circle, like a "round table meeting", but there was no tablecloth, no flowers or any other decorations, and no documents, paper, pens and drinks in front of everyone.Among the twelve "insurgents", Szilard, who had just arrived from Chicago, was the most eye-catching, and there were also Fermi and Olmhos who did not participate in the "insurrection".Including Perry and his assistants, Brigadier General Berners and Colonel Griffin, there were seventeen people present. The "uprising" added trouble to those in power. Perry came to meet the scientists at the order of the Secretary of the Army, saying that it was a symposium to try to achieve mutual understanding and communication.However, the way he acted in such a meeting surprised Ding Jieqiong and everyone present—— "Let me ask a question first." Before the scientists could open their mouths, Perry put on a straight face and started the conversation, "Dear 'insurgents', who among you has relatives who are fighting against Japan? Which of you has relatives who died in the On the battlefield of the war against Japan?" The buzzing conference room suddenly became silent. "Yes, no, not a single one." The general raised his right arm like a machine gun barrel, and spit out a series of rough syllables from his wide mouth like a bullet: "But during this period, thousands of young Americans died every day. In the war against Japan—yes, they are not your relatives; but I want to appeal to you: don't forget them, don't forget that it was their bloody sacrifices on the front line that safeguarded our peace and happiness, and protected some of us. The right of people in the back to talk nonsense while drinking coffee and wine - I don't care what kind of nonsense these people say, but if they pretend to be so detached, they oppose the use of atomic bombs on Japan to prolong the war To push as many American youths as possible to death, I will denounce them as Japanese accomplices and murderers!" The atmosphere in the conference room suddenly became tense. "Excuse me, Mr. Szilard, Mr. Rodham, Mr. Carmon, Mr. Neumann, and even Mr. Fermi." Perry looked around the venue, looking at the scientists named by him one by one. You are all Europeans, and you have your own country. There are Germans and Austrians among you, and Hungarians and Italians—why did you leave your homeland and travel all the way to America?" The few people who were named did not say anything.Someone averts Perry's gaze. "Let me answer for you: You are Jewish, or have Jewish blood, or have relatives who are Jewish, so you were targeted by Hitler for genocide. Almost every one of you has relatives who died in Nazi concentration camps. The United States accepted you , helped and cared for you, so that you not only escaped death, but also lived a prosperous life and created a brilliant career. But how do some of you treat the United States? These people make full use of the free and democratic political system of the United States , pointing fingers, self-righteousness, criticizing and opposing the United States, especially opposing the just war of the United States to fight back against fascism and save mankind - such actions, even the minimum sense of right and wrong and judgment, and even the minimum sense of humanity and humanity If you don’t even possess the spirit of communism, why should you pretend to be compassionate, be so hypocritical, and chatter endlessly? Doing so is actually hurting nature and reason, allowing tens of thousands of people to die tragically under the butcher knife of fascist Japan day and night without doing anything!” Pei Rille paused and spoke softly, "Hitler has been wiped out, Germany has surrendered, and some people who have suffered from the anti-Jewish policy have no enemies in their eyes. They have forgotten that there is Asia, the Far East, and China They can't hate the Japanese. They don't know or forget Japan's aggression and occupation of China and Southeast Asia, and they don't know or forget Japan's control over Indonesia, the Philippines, Burma, New Guinea, Thailand, and French Indochina The cruel rule of the people and massacres, and the torture of hundreds of thousands of British, American, Dutch and Australian prisoners of war day and night in those places, and the death of them every day-of course, it is not really "unknown" or "forgotten", but Extremely selfish and inhumane, turning a blind eye to the disasters and deaths of other peoples and peoples." Ding Jieqiong listened, her chest was hot and her heart was pounding, because Perry mentioned China... "Gentlemen, I mentioned China just now—and there happens to be a Chinese here today. She is Ms. Ding, whom we all know, like, and respect, including me. The difference between her and you is that , she has not become an American citizen so far. But this is another matter. Anyway, because of Miss Ding, today on this occasion, I would like to say a few more words about China and the Chinese people, say a little bit about most of you A historical fact that people may not know." The scientists listened attentively, all looking at the general's dark face and wide mouth. "Everyone knows that Hitler was originally an Austrian; therefore, after Austria was annexed by fascist Germany, the anti-Jewish policy there was particularly crazy. The only way to help the Jews escape death was to go to countries that were willing to accept them. But under Hitler's despotic power Under the circumstances, the embassies and consulates of more than 50 countries in Vienna did not issue visas to Jews. The United States is the most desirable place for Jews. But the United States refused to amend its immigration policy, and the consulate announced that the number of Austrians going to the United States was full. The British government In order to avoid the reaction of the Arabs, they simply refused to accept the Jews. Under such circumstances, the Chinese diplomats in Vienna resisted the pressure, risked themselves, and issued a large number of visas day and night, helping tens of thousands of Jews escape from Austria Among them, more than 18,000 Jews arrived in Shanghai, China, and more than 100,000 people turned to other countries halfway—in any case, they gained a second life! From the early 1930s to the early 1940s, Shanghai successively accepted The same is true for Harbin and Tianjin, which accepted and protected tens of thousands of Jews. They were able to settle down in China, even married and established businesses, and gave birth to thousands of Jewish babies-what do I mean by these? It is clear and simple: people must have a conscience!" Having said that, the general stopped abruptly and looked around the entire conference room.His way of speaking surprised people including Fermi and Olmhos, and even Brigadier General Bernas and Colonel Griffin.Everyone held their breath and looked at each other; some of them still had tears in their eyes... "Also, don't forget that since World War II, it was China who used its vast territory and sacrificed millions of people to restrain and severely damage a large number of Japanese troops—otherwise, there would be no Victory that is and will come." At this point, Perry paused for a moment.Suddenly, he stood up and waved his hands, his tone was cold and decisive, "No matter what some of you say or do, it is impossible to shake our determination, and it is impossible to hinder the decision-making of the US government. I came here today just to Trying to be benevolent and righteous. You can 'revolt' and do many things you want to do, but please remember: 1. It is the American liberal and democratic system that gives you this right; 2. Wartime regulations and military courts It worked—that's enough, dismiss the meeting!"